India playing role of a great conductor for semiconductor industry, ticking all right boxes: Modi | India News – Times of India
“Everyone here understands the difference between conductors and insulators. Conductors allow free flow of electrons, whereas insulators resist it. I want to tell you that India is going to be a great conductor for the semiconductor industry. We are ticking all the right boxes,” the PM said during his speech.
Over 500 industry leaders, researchers, policymakers, government officials and startups among others have participated in the event to take forward India’s semiconductor mission in Gandhinagar. Those present in the inaugural ceremony included Ashwini Vaishnaw, union minister for railways, communications, electronics, and IT; Rajeev Chandrasekhar, union MoS for electronics and IT; and Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel.
From the industry, the panel included Young Liu, chairman of Foxconn; Anil Agarwal, chairman of Vedanta Group; Mark Papermaster, EVP and CTO of AMD; Anirudh Devgan, president and CEO of Cadence; Sanjay Mehrotra, president and CEO of Micron Technology; and Prabhu Raja, president of semiconductor products group at Applied Materials.
“A year ago when we organized the first SemiCon, people were asking why invest (in the semiconductor sector in India)? A year later, the question has changed to why not to invest?” said the PM during his speech. “You have attached your future and dreams to India, and India does not disappoint. You have plenty of opportunities in the India of 21st century – India’s democracy and demography will help your business.”
The PM said that there are chances of exponential growth in the semiconductor sector, something which was already seen in digital and manufacturing sectors earlier.
“Some years ago, India was an emerging player in electronics. In 2014, our production was less than USD 30 billion. Today it has crossed USD 100 billion. In two years, our exports of electronics and mobile phones have doubled. A country that used to import mobile phones is now manufacturing and exporting the best phones to the world,” said the PM.
The PM said that the ongoing Industry 4.0 and India’s aspirations are in sync and a generation is experiencing technological leap. He said that many may not have used basic appliances, but are directly shifting to interconnected devices. Some may not have used a bike, but are directly using smart electric vehicles, he added.
He added that the emphasis of India’s semiconductor mission has remained on developing an entire ecosystem. He pointed at factors such as the Covid pandemic and ongoing Russia-Ukraine war to underline the requirement for a trusted supply chain partner.
“I am happy that the world trusts India. It is due to the stable, responsible and reform-oriented government. The industry believes in India as our infrastructure is developing rapidly. Semiconductor sector believes in India as we have a massive talent pool of engineers and designers,” said the PM. “When we say Make in India, we also say Make for India, Make for the World.”
He said that the comprehensive roadmap includes the recent launch of National Quantum Mission and soon-to-be tabled National Research Foundation Bill. The PM added that the change in engineering curriculum would help get experts for the industry. About 300 institutions are identified for the same. He said that in the next five years, about 1 lakh designers would be required, and the initiatives will ensure the supply.
“India understands the global supply chain. We understand your requirements. We are excited to work with you… The incentives are improved. We are giving 50% incentives,” said the PM. He added that the goal of India in the sector is the same as the G20 presidency where India wishes to work towards a better world and global good.
“I had said it from the Red Fort – this is the time, this is the right time. It is not true just for the country, but also for the world,” said the PM in the context of investing in India.
